Irrigation

Featured Articles
August 10, 2022 The irrigation at all costs mindset and narrow policies for drought protection during the colonial rule ignored rainfed agriculture and local practices that sustained agriculture in the Bombay Deccan. This continues even today.
Recurrent droughts and the struggle for survival (Image Source: Gaurav Bhosale via Wikimedia Commons):
August 9, 2022 Ensuring irrigation through farm ponds in tribal Chhattisgarh
Many tribal farmers opted for individual farm ponds under MGNREGA ensuring protective irrigation. (Image: Meenakshi Singh)
April 8, 2022 Lack of governance and six toothless irrigation acts have done very little to change the water situation on the ground in Maharashtra, argues water expert Pradeep Purandare.
Peanut irrigation in India (Image Source: Seratobikiba via Wikimedia Commons)
March 11, 2022 Subsidies enable tribal farmers to adopt micro-irrigation systems providing them assured irrigation
A key mitigation strategy to deal with water scarcity due to climate change is on-farm management of water using techniques like micro-irrigation (Image: India Water Portal Flickr)
September 17, 2021 Benefits of well-managed commons on livelihoods
Collective efforts revived the canal structure of Bichhiya dam bringing water to the village (Image: Foundation for Ecological Security)
August 29, 2021 Experience of Aga Khan Rural Support Programme (India) in revitalizing the traditional phad irrigation system in hilly tribal villages of Western Madhya Pradesh
Community members contribute voluntary labour required for laying the pipeline network and tank construction (Image: Anjali Aggarwal)
Government allows shale gas exploration
Policy Matters this week - Government allows shale gas exploration, companies to be ranked for corporate social responsibility and the government relaxes penalties for hydropower companies. Posted on 30 Sep, 2013 06:00 AM

Government allows shale gas exploration

Shale gas exploration in Alaska Source: Wikipedia
Minor mineral, major mafia
Residents of a nondescript village in Madhya Pradesh lost their livelihoods to sand mining but this illegal trade didn't make the limelight until an IAS officer was suspended in UP. Posted on 29 Sep, 2013 04:05 PM

Pahanbarri was a small village of 3000 people in Madhya Pradesh's Hoshangabad district. The 200-year old village was known for its fertile soil, thanks to being located on the banks of the Tawa, a tributary of the Narmada river. On August 1 this year, the river changed its course, broke its bank and entered the village.

Sand mining in Dindigul, TN Source: The Hindu
The comedy and tragedy of the Doddaballapur tanks
Twenty five cascading tanks culminate in the Naagarakere tank in Doddaballapur town in Karnataka. Once a source of water for the region, most of them are dry today. Can we revive them? Posted on 26 Sep, 2013 02:08 PM

1972 was the year. A massive hit, a landmark movie in Dr. Rajkumar's cinema career was realeased: Bangarada Manushya (The Golden Man).

With many melodious and meaningful songs, the theme was something close to one's heart - an urban youth returns to his ancestral village, takes up agriculture and works for the welfare of the village.

Doddaballapur tanks
Invitation to a workshop on 'Soil health, living soils the key to sustainability', Society for Promotion of Wastelands Development, New Delhi
An interactive brain storming dialogue on soil as a critical component of the natural system and a vital contributor to the human well being.
Posted on 21 Sep, 2013 07:44 AM

For more information on this 2 day workshop, please see the invitaion attached below.

To know more on Society for Promotion of Wastelands Development, please click here.

Society for Promotion of Wastelands Development
A special yet unequal relationship
Women work hard to get and use water every day but they lack easy access to it and are also not involved in decision making processes. How can we change this? Posted on 20 Sep, 2013 04:36 PM

Images of women balancing pots of water on their heads and walking for miles are commonplace in rural areas. In urban slums, the image is slightly different - women can be seen queuing up before public stand-posts or tankers. In both situations, one thing is clear - women have little or no access to water.

Women walk long distances to fetch water
Gulf of Kutch is India's first marine eco-sensitive zone
Policy Matters this week - Gulf of Kutch is India's first marine eco zone, Environment Ministry wants cess for shale gas exploration and NGT directs waste-to-energy plant to control emissions. Posted on 16 Sep, 2013 01:36 AM

Gulf of Kutch will be India's first marine eco-sensitive zone

No more effluent in the Gulf of Kutch (Wikipedia)
Chennai's disappearing 'Kazhiveli'
The swampy area of Pallikaranai, 20 km away from Chennai, has reduced from 5000 to 500 hectares in about 40 years. Despite it being made a partial Reserve Forest, it is under threat of dying out. Posted on 16 Sep, 2013 12:37 AM

The term wetland is a bit difficult to understand. Is it land or water or land that is wet? It is likely this difficulty in comprehending the term that has led to the sad state of affairs for most wetlands in the country today.

Kazhiveli' of Pallikaranai near Chennai
Ingenious system to manage sewage in Kolkata
Fisher folk of the East Kolkata Wetlands use sewage from the city’s lakes to rear fish. Watch an interview of the person who popularized this system that the locals invented years ago. Posted on 11 Sep, 2013 08:48 PM

They take your pain and give you what you need. They will absorb the excess showers that our cities can’t handle and replenish water underground when our taps run dry. Often underestimated, these shallow water bodies are also home to countless life forms and serve as winter destinations for distant migratory birds. Blame me for being philosophical but I equate wetlands to mothers.

Fishermen use wastewater of Kolkata to rear fish
200-crore penalty for Adani's Mundra port
News this week: 200-crore penalty on Mundra port, Parliament passes Land Acquisition Bill and dengue spreads in Mumbai. Posted on 08 Sep, 2013 07:32 PM

POLICY MATTERS

200-crore penalty for Adani's Mundra port

Land reclaimation from the sea at the Mundra Port
Invitation for national conference on 'Ancient farming technologies of India : Principles and practices', Institute of Scientific Research on Vedas, Dondapadu Eluru, Andhra Pradesh
A conference to motivate a researcher to go more deep in to traditional Indian organic farming techniques and to encourage a general field agriculturist to adopt more ancient techniques.
Posted on 07 Sep, 2013 01:37 PM

For more information on this interesting conference, please click here.

Traditional farming techniques
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